Transnational Mixed Asians In-Between Spaces

In traditional Ethnic Studies categories, mixed race has been marginalized, misappropriated, tokenized or simply left out.  In order to allow for a collaborative environment given the use of essentialized racial categories and lack of scholarship on the experiences of mixed race people, the purposes of the working group are as follows: to create an interdisciplinary space for mixed race studies dialogue and to provide a safe space for scholars to discuss issues of mixed race identity.  This working group will also serve as a space for scholars doing work on this topic to present work on current projects and to discuss collaboration on future research projects.  We also plan to compose panels for conferences such as the Critical Mixed Race Studies Conference in November and the Association for Asian American Studies Conference next spring.  Some of the group members' research interests include mixed race identity and the US Census, mixed race youth in political activism, Amerasian studies (Okinawan, Vietnamese, and other sites of US military involvement in Asia), transnational discourse, the Asian diaspora in Latin America and the effects of conquest and colonization on indigenous Asian peoples.  A few of the theories the group is interested in exploring are Grounded Theory, Critical Race Theory, Racial Formation Theory, Mestizaje/Borderlands theory (Anzaldua) and theories of hybridity and the third space (Bhabaha).  Overall, as a result of the discussions in the working group, we hope to encourage and promote research on this topic, to solidify a legitimate space in academia for the study of mixed race/bi-cultural/transnational peoples and to bring together scholars from multiple disciplines and research areas to collaborate on future research in this area.